The poll finds that 56 percent of likely voters questioned oppose the ban on same sex marriage, compared to 36 percent who favor it. Virginia voters approved the ban in 2006, adding it to the state’s Constitution. Two lawsuits have been filed since then challenging the ban. The Republican candidate for governor, Ken Cuccinelli, supports the prohibition on gay marriage and is defending the amendment as attorney general. His opponent Democrat Terry McAuliffe wants it repealed.

If McAuliffe gets elected, is there a chance for a marriage equality bill next year?

In related news, Ted Olson, one of the two main attorneys in the prop 8 case, made a donation to Ken Cuccinelli’s campaign last month.

A campaign finance report that Cuccinelli filed with the Virginia State Board of Elections on Tuesday noted former U.S. Solicitor General Ted Olson gave $1,000 to Cuccinelli’s campaign on Sept. 3. Olson, who served in the position under then-President George W. Bush from 2001-2004, contributed to Cuccinelli’s campaign less than a month before the American Foundation for Equal Rights announced that lawyers representing Timothy Bostic and Tony London of Norfolk and Carol Schall and Mary Townley of Richmond asked him and David Boies to join their case.

It’s not a big surprise, given Olson’s well-known conservative leanings, but it is disappointing to see him giving money to such an anti-gay candidate.

The American Foundation for Equal Rights — with its attention-getting political odd couple of conservative Republican lawyer Theodore Olson and liberal Democrat David Boies — will announce Monday it is joining a lawsuit against what the lawyers called Virginia’s “draconian” laws prohibiting same-sex marriages, the recognition of such marriages performed where they are legal, and civil unions. It is one of dozens of lawsuits filed across the nation by same-sex marriage activists who say they feel emboldened by the Supreme Court’s decisions in June that overturned the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) that forbade recognition of same-sex marriages and separately allowed such unions to resume in California.

Why Virginia?

Olson said AFER was invited to join the case by attorneys for the plaintiffs, Norfolk residents Timothy Bostic and Tony London, whose marriage application was turned down, and Carol Schall and Mary Townley, who have a 15-year-old daughter and whose marriage in California is not recognized by the commonwealth. Virginia is an “attractive target,” said Olson, who lives in the state, because its rejection of same-sex marriage and civil unions is so complete. “The more unfairly people are being treated, the more obvious it is that it’s unconstitutional,” Olson said.

Eventually, another one of these test cases will reach the US Supreme Court, at which point, perhaps, the court will actually rule on the merits.

The issue of whether the Obama administration will file amicus briefs before the Supreme Court on the upcoming Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) and Prop 8 challenge is quickly turning into “a thing.”

First there was Chris Johnson’s story in the Blade on Friday, in which super-lawyer Ted Olson urged the administration to file an amicus brief on behalf of the Prop 8 case heading to the Supreme Court in a few months:

Ted Olson, a co-counsel in the Prop 8 lawsuit, made the remarks during a conference call on Friday in response to a question from Politico’s Josh Gerstein. Olson said a friend-of-the-court brief from the Justice Department would have “great effect” in the effort to overturn Prop 8.

On the Ryan Campaign Plane – Joe Biden’s stand in for Paul Ryan’s debate prep will be Ted Olson, according to Ryan spokesperson Brendan Buck.

The Republican attorney famously argued in federal court for same sex marriage and against Proposition 8. Paul Ryan is against same sex marriage.

At a LGBT dinner in Washington D.C. in March, the renowned attorney called the battle against Proposition 8 “the highlight of my life” and “this is the most important thing we’ve done in our lives,” according to the Washington Post.

Renowned conservative Republican attorney and marriage equality hero Ted Olson is going to Greensboro, North Carolina on April 1 for a rally to help defeat the antigay initiative Amendment One. The proposed antigay constitutional amendment on the ballot for the May 8 Republican Primary would not only ban marriage rights for same sex couples but would prohibit recognition of all same sex unions.

During a brief interview after the West Coast Premier of Dustin Lance Black’s play ‘8″ about the district court trial that found Prop 8 unconstitutional, Olson noted how “opinions have shifted” considerably since Prop 8 was passed in California in 2008. He hopes more Republicans will support marriage equality and oppose measures such as Amendment One, which Olson noted, “wipes away the whole thing,” meaning all legal recognition of same sex relationships.

“I’m going to go down to North Carolina in April. There’s a big rally down there. I’m going to go down and do my bit,” Olson said. “We want to win one. You heard the [Perry v Schwarzenegger Prop 8 trial] witness talk about how the outcome [of antigay ballot measures] is always against gay and lesbian people. It would be really great if we started changing that. And maybe North Carolina is a chance.”

This morning, Ted Olson – the conservative lawyer who represented President Bush in Bush v. Gore – appeared on Fox News Sunday to discuss his recent victory in overturning Proposition 8, which banned same-sex marriages in California.

Throughout the interview, host Chris Wallace attempted to trip up his guest with a series of familiar Republican talking points, all of which Olson repudiated.

Wallace asked Olson to identify the right to same-sex marriage in the constitution and wondered why “seven million Californians” “don’t get to say that marriage is between a man and a woman.” Olson replied that the Supreme Court has ruled that marriage was a fundamental right and pointed out that the constitution made no explicit mention of interracial marriage either.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook – just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you’ll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We’re also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.

According to Theodore Olson, the legal challenge to a California measure banning same-sex marriage he is leading with David Boies clearly has global implications. “What happens in this case won’t just affect the people of California, it will affect the country. And what happens in the United States will affect the rest of the world.”

Olson, who co-chairs Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher’s appellate practice, made that assertion while talking to reporters shortly after addressing the annual Outlaw networking dinner. Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher has hosted the dinner in its Connecticut Avenue office for the past four years to give members of the Georgetown Law Center student group that focuses on legal issues affecting gays, lesbian, and bisexuals a chance to mingle with Big Law partners.

Olson’s remarks were styled as a free-wheeling discussion, during which he fielded questions about the case from some of the 60 people who attended the event. He touched on a number of issues, including whether the Supreme Court revealed its views on the case by banning cameras from the California courtroom, what the broader impact of the challenge could be if it is successful, and the emotional effect the case has had on him.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook – just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you’ll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We’re also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.